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Round 6 of the 2017-18 Australian Women’s Ice Hockey League season has finished with wins for the Sydney Sirens and Melbourne Ice. The Sirens currently sit on top of the standings, six points clear of the second placed Ice. Competition resumes on 3 February with the Brisbane Goannas hosting the Adelaide Rush in a double header at Iceworld Boondall.

Round 2 of the 2017-18 Australian Junior Ice Hockey League season has finished with all four teams in action picking up at least one win. The Adelaide Generals and Sydney Sabres sit at the top of their Division standings, while the Generals lead the league standings with 15 points. Next week the Perth Sharks host the Melbourne Glaciers in a three game series and the Brisbane Blitz travel to Penrith to take on the Sydney Wolf Pack.

Round 2 also saw the Perth Sharks take on the Perth Pelicans in the first of a four game exhibition series. The Sharks won the game 8-1.

League
– Sport and Recreation Victoria will provide an event assistance grant to the league for the AWIHL finals on 17 and 18 March 2018 at the O’Brien Group Arena. The grant was given as part of the States Significant Sporting Events Program and will go towards reducing the operating costs of the finals.

Round 3 of the 2017-18 Australian Women’s Ice Hockey League season has finished with the Sydney Sirens defeating the Melbourne Ice in both games at the O’Brien Group Arena. The Sirens remain undefeated and now sit six points clear at the top of the standings. Competition resumes on 2 December with the Adelaide Rush hosting the Melbourne Ice in a double header.

Round 1 of the 2017-18 Australian Women’s Ice Hockey League season has finished with wins for the Sydney Sirens and Melbourne Ice. The Sirens sit on top of the standings, edging out the Ice on goal difference. Competition resumes on 11 November with the Rush hosting the Goannas in a double header at the Adelaide Ice Arena.

The start of the 2017-18 season is getting closer however the AJIHL have yet to announce the full season schedule and the participating teams. Here is what we know so far:

Teams
– The Adelaide Generals have held a training camps on 22 September, 29 September and 5 October.
– The Brisbane Blitz will be holding training camps on 25 October and 1 November.
– The Melbourne Glaciers are expected to return for the 2017-18 season.
– The Perth Sharks will again represent Western Australia in the league. Ice Hockey WA have also mentioned they may reform the Perth Pelicans as an exhibition team which will play games against the Sharks between AJIHL tournaments.
– Currently no confirmation on the Sydney teams however Brisbane have two Sydney tournaments scheduled for December.

In other news Sebastian Gobeil has been announced as the head coach for the Brisbane Blitz for the upcoming season. Gobeil was the teams assistant coach last season and replaces Darryl Dunsford in the head coach role. The Blitz are expected to announce the rest of the management team in the coming weeks.

The finals of the 2017 Australian Women’s Tier 2 Show Case Series have finished with Western Australia defeating the New South Wales Bombers 7-1 in the grand final. The win gives Western Australia their first AW2SCS title, having finished third last season. The Melbourne Dragons finished in third place after defeating the Canberra Pirates in a shootout and the Brisbane Blaze finished fifth after beating the Adelaide Valkyries 3-0. The finals were held at the O’Brien Group Arena and saw each team compete in two games against two teams outside of their own division to complete the regular season. Following the completion of the regular season the teams progressed to the playoffs with qualifying based on their final position in the league standings.

Following the playoffs Western Australia competed in an exhibition game against the Melbourne Ice Women. The Ice won the game 3-2. The game was held as part of Western Australia’s bid to enter the Australian Women’s Ice Hockey League in the 2018-19 season.

Note: Games consist of three 18 minute periods with no stop clock and a two minute break between periods. The competition is open to players over the age of 14 however AWIHL players must have league approval before competing.

The 2017 AIHL playoffs have finished with the Melbourne Ice defeating the CBR Brave 4-1. The win gives the Ice their fourth Goodall Cup and their first since 2012. The Ice progressed to the final after defeating the Melbourne Mustangs 4-2 in the semifinals while the Brave defeated the Perth Thunder 6-2 in their semifinal. For the fifth year running the finals are sponsored by Air Canada.

The Melbourne Ice’s Sebastian Ottosson was named the finals most valuable player. Also announced was Skaters Network Local Player of the Year which was awarded to Joey Hughes of the Melbourne Ice.

The Australian Ice Hockey League will host the inaugural Women in Ice Hockey Summit on 2 September at the O’Brien Group Arena. The Summit will run from 08:30 to 14:00 and feature keynotes, panel discussions and interactive workshops. For more information, including the full agenda, see theAIHL.com.